South Berwick prepares 2,000 pounds of strawberries for annual event

By OLIVER JENKINS ojenkins@fosters.com

Saturday

Jun 30, 2012 at 3:15 AM

SOUTH BERWICK, Maine — Although the weather may have been dark and drizzly early Friday morning, South Berwick's community center was packed with excitement, energy, and over 2,000 pounds of strawberries.

In preparation for the annual South Berwick Strawberry Festival, approximately 150 to 200 volunteers were expected to converge on the town's community center to hull the enormous amount of strawberries. Strawberry hulling is a process where the leaves of the strawberry are removed.

But with 2,000 pounds of the fruit to hull, is it even possible everything will be ready for Saturday's big event? According to Khayyan Mohammed, the Strawberry Festival's publicity coordinator, time won't be an issue.

"Last year we had enough volunteers to finish by 10 a.m.," he remarked. Typically, the hulling process is scheduled to take place from 8 a.m. to noon.

"We try to stay as green as possible," Mohammed mentioned. "The leaves go to compost while the cardboard and plastic items are brought to the dump."

By the look of their food quantities, it appears South Berwick event officials are gearing up for a large turnout Saturday. Along with the 2,000 pounds of strawberries, purchased from Watsonville, California, Friday's event also featured 70 gallons of whipped cream, 330 dozen biscuits, and 90 cheesecakes.

"We are certainly expecting a bigger turnout than last year," Mohammed stated. "With the weather being warm it should be a very busy day." Current weather forecasts predict mostly sunny skies with temperatures reaching the upper 80s, peaking in the low 90s at the hottest parts of the day Saturday.

According to Mohammed, the most active parts of the day should be between 9:30 and noon, as many residents arrive early to beat the heat. Nonetheless, there will be significant crowds at the South Berwick Central School until at least 3 p.m.

As Friday's hulling event indicated, the South Berwick Strawberry Festival is an event for everyone, regardless of age. "This is definitely a community and family-oriented event," Mohammed confirmed.

Cathy McKeel, an active Strawberry Festival volunteer for the past 17 years, agreed with Mohammed's viewpoint. "This is a great community event," she acknowledged, while also mentioning the hulling of the strawberries is her favorite part of the Strawberry Festival. "It just brings everyone in the community together and seeing this is very cool."

All profits raised during Saturday's event will be returned to nonprofit groups in the community in the form of grants. Last year alone, $9,000 were awarded in grants, Mohammed said. Overall, the Festival Committee has given out over $200,000 in grants and scholarships over the past 37 years.

Everyone is encouraged to participate in today's Strawberry Festival. The festival's numerous entertainment events, scheduled to take place from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m., will occur at South Berwick's Central School, located on 197 Main Street. The festival kicks off with a pancake breakfast, sponsored by the First Baptist Church, at the school's food court from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m.

The New England Artisans will also be camped out on the Central School's grounds from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. These artisans come from all over New England and sell a variety of items including pottery, jewelry, drawings, handbags, and more.

Musical performances will occur throughout the day by acts such as the Funky Divas, the Jeannie Daniels Band, and Roots, Rhythm and Dub, along with multiple others.

For more information visit, www.southberwickstrawberryfestival.com.

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